Friday 21st June.
We spent a relaxing morning chilling at the villa. We Left for Citta di Castillo at 6:30pm.
We couldn’t get close to the venue due to our coach being too big so we had to make a quick decision on how we could get the piano to the venue. We tried alternative streets but we were stopped by Italian men with cigars who were remonstrating because the streets were too narrow ahead, however, they looked less menacing due to their powder pink and lemon summer shorts :-).
Parking behind the old wall of the city we walked to the Piazza with the piano. The boys had to carry it up four flights of stairs, across streets and children’s parks before eventually reaching our destination.
We made changes to our original plans of where to eat as wonderful smells from a nearby Pizzeria was calling to our hungry stomachs! We managed to get a fabulous deal, the pizzas were enormous and truly delicious.
We began rehearsals at 9 ready to perform at 10. At first we had a small audience but as we sang our programme we were stopping people in the street of all ages. Babies in prams to Grandparents. The piazza was full and had the most marvellous ambience.
As I sang O mio babbino caro the whole piazza was silent and I remember singing to all the fathers out there. Secretly wishing my Dad and my Mum were there to watch.
It was a fabulous night. The group and I received wonderful applause and comments such as ”Mamma Mia’
Did all the stone and masonry echo?
It is lovely to see you here again, the resonance in the church on the Saturday was amazing 🙂 The outdoor locations had the benefit of history in the buildings and the enthusiasm of the audience to help carry our voices.
I had such a good time.
Best wishes and I hope to see you back again here soon.
Charlotte
You are gracious as well as lovely. Thank you.
Ah, you sang my favorite.
Hi Mikels, I hope that I can record the song and post a copy here on my blog. Thanks for dropping by and I hope that you can come back again soon.
Best wishes
Charlotte
The women all look lovely… what happened with the guys outfits?
Hi Ted, the girls all agreed their outfits before we left and the guys, well they picked their own outfits 🙂
Best wishes
Charlotte
Looks like it… they look like the help who were hired to set up the stage and chairs. I’m sure they sounded fine, but proper attire is important in setting a mood… the women certainly understand that.
I’m sure you sang as beautifully as you looked.
Thanks Ted 🙂
Thank you for sharing your exciting journey. It makes lovely reading. 🙂 Sarah
Hi Sarah, I am pleased that you have enjoyed reading through my posts. It has been a great adventure for me to write about and I have really enjoyed every minute 🙂
Hope to see you here again soon, best wishes
Charlotte
I’m wondering how they got power to the piano, did it run off batteries? It was late to perform 10 pm. I’m sure you were good.
Hi Tim, there was power at the venue in the Piazza and the lights and chairs were supplied by the local residents. The lifestyle in Italy lends itself to later evenings due to their use of their afternoon breaks from work. The recital went really well and the audience enjoyed the performance.
Best wishes
Charlotte
What a treat for the locals:)
It was just as much a treat for us to get to sing for them. There is nothing I enjoy more than performing for such an enthusiastic audience 🙂
Best wishes and thanks for coming back.
Charlotte
You start with a large and delicious pizza and close with Puccini. Wonderful! What more do you want from life? Oh yeah: your parents in the audience of course.
(Sono un omone italiano, non fumo il sigaro ma doro Puccini e vado matto per la pizza)
Ciao e buona permanenza in Italia.
Hi Benito, it was a truly wonderful evening that would have only been better had my parents been there.
Arrivederci e grazie per la visita
Charlotte
You sang my favourite!
Hi Collette, I am so pleased that I picked a song that you enjoy, I will try and record it and post a copy here on my blog.
Best wishes
charlotte
That would be great. I have sent the email you requested, by the way.
Collette
I used to live in Italy – such an amazing country – full of art and music! Very jealous of you being there now. Hope you are aving a great trip and thanks for passing by my blog!
It was a lovely country and I hope to visit there again. It was a fantastic opportunity and one that I will remember for a long time 🙂
Best wishes
Charlotte
You look amazing – beautiful dress!
Thank you, one of the great things about singing classical music is you get to wear long dresses 😉
Best Wishes
Charlotte
So much behind the scene stuff…great…
Hi Marsha, I’ve never done anything like this before in my life, it was great. Max was a fabulous organiser and he’d done these several times before. My bid to being deputy organiser was organising the meal deal for our group.
Best wishes please drop by again,
Charlotte
Not only did your group get wonderful recognition, but that dress was made for you!
Thanks Becky, I loved your blog about home, I miss home when I’m away and I sing a song by Maury Yeston from Phantom called ‘Home’, I’ve been known to bring Mum’s to tears with it.
Best Wishes
Charlotte
What a wonderful experience. Thank you for following my blog & welcome, Vohn
Hi Vohn, love the idea of the baked tortilla stack, I’m always looking for good filling food on a students budget and I’m not much of a cook 🙂 Have you lived in Scotland a long time?
Best wishes
Charlotte
You look wonderful and I bet your singing of O mio babbino caro must be a moving moment. Congrats on a great performance!
Thank you so much Arti, it was a great night and the audience was so appreciative that it made the event extra special 🙂
Best wishes
Charlotte
Glad you’re getting a chance to travel and perform. Keep those pipes fresh and stay rested, but get out and explore too.
Italy has that rich past, ruins everywhere, and a kind of earthy sensuality
Hi Chris, I hope one day soon to get back to Florence and have a good explore as the city is full of history 🙂
Best wishes and I hope to see you back here again soon
Charlotte
Absolutely.
I am so enjoying your adventure and you do look great, you will have made lots of people happy. I look forward to the recording, when you can get it up.
All your pics and stories take me back to 2002 we went with two friends on a Verdian adventure. We stayed in Busseto, where Verdi was born, at Le Due Foscari hotel, run by tenor Carlo Bergonzi (his voice was fabulous in late 60s and 70s). We went to two amazing productions, Rigoletto and Luisa Miller, performed on outdoor stages, one hung off the side of a castle. Later I used some of this material for my story, Unseen Unsung, about a young opera singer with a head injury.
Thank you.
Hi Hilary, that sounds like a wonderful trip. I would love to travel and see some of the great operas in the beautiful opera houses. Then if I am fortunate I may get to perform in some of them one day 🙂
That sounds like an interesting storyline when did you write it Hilary?
With my warmest wishes.
Charlotte
Ah, you look so beautiful! Like a princess 🙂
I’m reminded of how much I miss my time in Italy! It’s definitely a superb place, the culture there is brilliant. You have a lovely voice! You inspire me to try harder 🙂 (I sound like a dying cat LOL but I really long to have a nice singing voice and I’ve taken lessons before but didn’t get really advanced). I look forward to reading about your future adventures!
Hi Lauren & Sylvia, when did you get to go to Italy and how long were you there for? I am sure that you are not quite as bad as you say at singing 🙂 and thanks for the lovely compliment. I hope that you can both pop back again soon.
Best wishes
Charlotte
Hi!
I (Silvia) went to Italy numerous times, once I stayed in Milan for three months 🙂 I’ve also been to Rome, Venice, Florence, Pisa, Verona, and other places. And it’s only me that sucks at singing (and I can confidently say that I do indeed suck, haha), Lauren is fantastic at it. Best wishes to you in your singing career! 🙂
-Silvia